Shuffle sees new top bureaucrats at Energy, Environment

The Conservative government appointed its’ bureaucratic point man on energy policy to a new job at the International Monetary Fund and replaced him with the top executive at Environment Canada as part of a shuffle of the senior ranks.

Kathryn May, Ottawa Citizen

Published on: June 20, 2014 | Last Updated: June 22, 2014 7:34 PM EDT

The Conservative government appointed its bureaucratic point man on energy policy to a new job at the International Monetary Fund and replaced him with the top executive at Environment Canada as part of a shuffle of the senior ranks.James Park / Ottawa Citizen

The Conservative government appointed its bureaucratic point man on energy policy to a new job at the International Monetary Fund and replaced him with the top executive at Environment Canada as part of a shuffle of the senior ranks.

Serge Dupont is leaving his job as deputy minister of Natural Resources Canada to become the IMF’s executive director representing Canada, Ireland and the Caribbean in Washington. He replaces Tom Hockin, the former Mulroney cabinet minister whom the late finance minister Jim Flaherty appointed to the job in 2009.

Environment Canada deputy minister Bob Hamilton got the nod to replace Dupont at Natural Resources. At the same time, Michael Martin, the senior associate deputy minister at National Defence — who earlier served as Environment Canada’s chief negotiator and ambassador for climate change — replaces Hamilton at Environment.

The shuffle at the energy and environment portfolios come on the heels of the Conservative government’s approval of the Northern Gateway pipeline, subject to Enbridge meeting the 209 conditions laid down by a federal review panel.

Dupont was a key player in that process and was also the architect of the sale of Atomic Energy of Canada’s Candu reactor business to engineering giant SNC-Lavalin Group. He oversaw that deal, which was years in the making, while in senior postings at both Natural Resources and Privy Council Office, where he was deputy minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and special advisor to the minister of Natural Resources on nuclear energy policy.

Dupont follows in the footsteps of senior Finance bureaucrats such as Kevin Lynch, Ian Bennett and Michael Horgan, who held the IMF job before returning to the public service. Both Dupont and Hamilton are former Finance executives who were recently touted as possible candidates to take over the top job at Finance.

Some bureaucrats say Hamilton’s experience at Environment makes him well positioned to head Natural Resources, because he is familiar with the issues and the key environmental players who will have to be brought on board for the government’s various energy and pipeline initiatives to proceed.

Other senior bureaucrats who were moved to new jobs include:

– Louise Levonian, associate deputy minister at Finance, becomes the senior associate deputy minister at Employment and Social Development and chief operating officer for Service Canada, replacing Karen Jackson who has retired.

– Carolina Giliberti, senior assistant deputy minister at Service Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada, moves to Canadian Food Inspection Agency as executive vice-president. She replaces Mary Komarynsky who retired.

– Patrick Borbey, president of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, moves to Canadian Heritage as associate deputy minister.

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